I am an appliance maniac, and love my indoor (gluten-free style) girll for food emergencies. One of my favorites is to thinly slice scubbed (unpeeled) white potatoes, toss them on the pre-heated grill for 4 minutes, flip them, then stick a piece of fish or a sliced hot dog on top, and grill for another 3-4 minutes.

I also like to make gluten-free mac & cheese. Cook brown rice pasta until al dente' and add cheese and milk of your choice, a shot of mustard or worchestier sauce, s & p.

It I have Cincinnatti Chilli to serve on top of that, I'm one happy camper!

Or I fry up some Hormel Hash (it has to be crispy) and serve it with eggs over easy and hot sauce or chili.

I usually keep a couple of Wolfgang P's gluten-free soups on hand. They're expensive but fast and easy.

I get home late several days a week, so what I have been doing is making my pasta or rice staple, and freezing individual portions. I also freeze individual portions of chicken, meatloaf, whatever I am making when I get a chance, so I can pull out components of a meal and just make a veggie. super quick meal.

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gluten free since 11/12

dairy and soy free since 1/13

chocolate free since 6/14

I miss my chocolate!!! but I'm not sick anymore, and that's what really matters

I never let myself be without a bag of Farmrich meatballs in my freezer and some pasta and Classico sauce in my pantry. When all else fails and I am beyond ideas or ambition I can throw together something resembling food in about 15 minutes.

I also keep a huge bag of frozen chicken breasts which, frozen veggies, fresh potatoes and (I know this is a terrible food sin) those frozen burgers on hand. Some days I feel like cooking and some days I just want to throw some dinner together quickly and having these things give me a whole lot of options.

I used to like to keep Hormel chili. I know at my Costco they also have some Pacific soups that are gluten free. Uh... they have some Amy's ones too but I know how some people feel about them. Oooh, last winter Kirkland also had a cranberry jalepeno meatball thing. So good!

And I know you are new to Colorado, not sure how new you are to the snow but a tip here. Get used to driving in snow. Unless there is a state of emergency and it is illegal to drive, you probably aren't snowed in.

I never let myself be without a bag of Farmrich meatballs in my freezer and some pasta and Classico sauce in my pantry. When all else fails and I am beyond ideas or ambition I can throw together something resembling food in about 15 minutes.

I also keep a huge bag of frozen chicken breasts which, frozen veggies, fresh potatoes and (I know this is a terrible food sin) those frozen burgers on hand. Some days I feel like cooking and some days I just want to throw some dinner together quickly and having these things give me a whole lot of options.

I used to like to keep Hormel chili. I know at my Costco they also have some Pacific soups that are gluten free. Uh... they have some Amy's ones too but I know how some people feel about them. Oooh, last winter Kirkland also had a cranberry jalepeno meatball thing. So good!

And I know you are new to Colorado, not sure how new you are to the snow but a tip here. Get used to driving in snow. Unless there is a state of emergency and it is illegal to drive, you probably aren't snowed in.

Me + snow = disaster! lol...One of these days, i'll venture out into it. We are suppose to get near a foot or more tomorrow.

Me + snow = disaster! lol...One of these days, i'll venture out into it. We are suppose to get near a foot or more tomorrow.

Some tips from a snow-driving veteran: Always keep emergency supplies in your car (trunk, backseat, whatever), both to deal with snow and related issues (ex. sand/salt/shovel/flashlight) and in case you're stuck awhile (ex. water/snack/blanket/book to read so you don't go insane- and always have your cell phone, obviously). If you haven't yet, make sure it's in good working order, the tires are in good shape, battery is in good shape, etc. etc. Drive slow and you should be fine. =)

For super-quick snacks, right now I'm loving chex (and store brand chex, which where I shop are also labeled gluten-free).

Some tips from a snow-driving veteran: Always keep emergency supplies in your car (trunk, backseat, whatever), both to deal with snow and related issues (ex. sand/salt/shovel/flashlight) and in case you're stuck awhile (ex. water/snack/blanket/book to read so you don't go insane- and always have your cell phone, obviously). If you haven't yet, make sure it's in good working order, the tires are in good shape, battery is in good shape, etc. etc. Drive slow and you should be fine. =)

For super-quick snacks, right now I'm loving chex (and store brand chex, which where I shop are also labeled gluten-free).

Excellent advice. I always keep an emergency kit in my Jeep, year round. I simply keep seasonally appropriate stuff. And always always always a book, yes! I like to keep fruit snacks and since it isn't that big a deal with the nuts for me, things like Trio bars or Kind bars. I also keep a Mio or a box of those powdered single water flavor packets because I can't stand plain water. Yes, kind of snobby to think that even in an emergency I'd want flavored water but whatever. At least I'm honest with myself.

Oh my gosh, a house without Chex is hardly a house! That would be almost as bad as a house without Pebbles. Have on hand at all times: Chex, peanut butter, powdered sugar, chocolate chips. Also probably Pebbles, butter (or some such) and marshmallows. Who needs meals when you have have muddy buddies and krispy treats!!!

I use... I don't know some random dairy and soy free something or other so I would assume you can use anything that calls itself margarine or butter. I'm far too lazy to go up a flight of stairs to check but if I remember I'll report back after lunch.

I find that the 'lite' versions often are disasters in baking. I tried frosting a carrot cake with 'lite' cream cheese and it was a runny mess. 'Lite' has its place, but not in frosting Have no idea how it would work in Krispy Treats, but probably the same principle.

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Neroli

"Everything that can be counted does not necessarily count; everything that counts cannot necessarily be counted." - Albert Einstein

"Life is not weathering the storm; it is learning to dance in the rain"

"Whatever the question, the answer is always chocolate." Nigella Lawson

I keep an LED flashlight in my car that cranks instead of using a battery. I always have light available that way. Jumper cables are a must too. Instead of a blanket, I have a sleeping bag. It will keep me warmer.

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gluten-free since June, 2011

It took 3 !/2 years but my intolerances to corn, soy, and everything else (except gluten) are gone!

I keep an LED flashlight in my car that cranks instead of using a battery. I always have light available that way. Jumper cables are a must too. Instead of a blanket, I have a sleeping bag. It will keep me warmer.

My husband has one of those flashlights. He thinks I need one too. I'm like dude, if you seriously think I'd rather crank that than be in the dark you probably never met me.

Carrying supplies- not just for cold weather. I carry a lot of extra water in my car(s), and this summer had to rescue 2 dogs who were badly overheating because they had been left out in the back of a pickup truck bed, in the parking lot of a grocery - me, 2 other people, and a store employee who went back into the store to try to find the owners, all were all trying to get these poor dogs rehydrated before they passed out or worse. The way it caught my attention was that the one started howling and crying and then tried to leap out, nearly strangling itself, so I had no choice but to try to do something, but others also came running up. I have never seen dogs drink that much by percentage of their body weight before, when the owners finally showed up to this scene of people wetting their dogs down and pouring bottle after bottle of water in a dish for them to lap up, I really had to bite my tongue to be diplomatic about how freaking dangerous this was. PARK IN THE SHADE, people. ALWAYS OFFER WATER WHEN YOU STOP. HEAT KILLS. I loved this one lady who rummaged in her car and found a tupperware box for us to use, bless her, and I had my dog's travel bowl with me.

The other thing that we've gotten a huge amount of use out of is this little bitty LED flashlight which runs on a few batteries and has a strong magnet that I can stick on the metal at the front interior of the jeep, so it can be accessed quickly. It has a flasher as well as a regular beam, and if traffic suddenly goes crawling or stopped, I've taken it and turned on its flasher so my whole interior is lighting up as well as my conventional flashers on the vehicle - people drive like crazed squirrels on crack out here on the freeways, and this might reduce my chance of getting rear ended. It is also handy to stick under the hood as a spot beam if you're looking for something in the dark .

The thing with driving in snow, or in other slick conditions that ice up frequently, where it is not flat, or the roads otherwise are not plowed and salted as if in an urban area, is that if you possibly can, go ahead and get a 4 wheel drive vehicle, even if this means selling your current one and getting a used one, even though they are heavier and tend to get lesser gas milage, and they need to be handled just a bit differently. Yes, they are sometimes awkward to get into, until you get the hang of stepping up on a running board, but otherwise, there is nothing like 4 wheel drive for snow. For trucks, this is almost mandatory as a safety element, as you have to put weight in the cargo bed, otherwise you are a menace on the highway. But even putting weight in the back of ANY vehicle, 4 wh drive or not, in winter, is going to help you with traction on the road. Bags of kitty litter make handy weight, and then they can also be used for spreading it to gain traction. The other thing is make sure your tires that you purchase are highly rated for traction, and don't drive on tires with lousy tread. This means your tires with "aggressive" tread may become more noisy on a dry, clean highway, so what, it's better than sliding around. Consider getting a pair of snow chains for your tires, if you don't have 4 wheel drive. You should have a small shovel in the car, along with a broom, for moving snow if you have to, if you park somewhere and then it dumps on you. Make sure you replace your windshield wiper liners or blades every autumn at Halloween, which is usually just before the weather goes bad, because the first week of snow, that is when everyone else bought the size you needed. Also top off the windshield wiper fluid then. As for driving, just drive a bit slower, and give yourself a lot more braking distance. If it is really snowy or foggy a lot (we sometimes get this incredible winter fog here, called tule (too lee) fog, which comes up in the evening) get a set of good fog lights put on the vehicle, too, if it doesn't have them already. I learned this the hard way when my otherwise wonderful new (used) vehicle didn't have them, the low beams were still aimed sorta high, and it took me over an hour to drive a dozen miles home the first time it fogged up on our back roads, which are sort of crudely marked and which have very interesting bridges and ditches, none of which I wanted to end up in. You may want to consult your state's DMV rules about what sorts of running lights you can use on the highway, also. If you don't have triple AAA emergency service yet, or the equivalent, go ahead and get that, for those surprising times your car just won't start because the battery or something else went pffffffffizzzzzzzz.

Soon, with some preparation and practice, you too can be driving in snow. Next week: training your spouse not to take a weenie car through floodwaters or, life as a commuter through a rice- growing area.